


Saving Stretch

by SansyFresh



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: 18+ ONLY, Angst, Flashbacks, Graphic, Graphic Depections of Abuse, Heavy Stuff at Times, I'm Sorry, Implied abuse, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, It'll get better, Kidnapping, M/M, Suicidal Thoughts, Suicide Attempt, This is mostly gonna be painful, at the beginning at least, sorta - Freeform, vent fic, very dark
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-27
Updated: 2017-08-07
Packaged: 2018-08-27 20:51:46
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 7
Words: 6,892
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8416327
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SansyFresh/pseuds/SansyFresh
Summary: Swapfell Papyrus is killed and Swapfell Sans goes to find a replacement. He just so happens to stumble upon Underswap. This Papyrus just needs a few alterations, and then he'll be the perfect brother.This is really dark, please read the tags.





	1. Pain and Suffering is Only the Beginning

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so I was planning to write this as a full fic at first, and changed my mind, and then changed my mind again. So, uh...mostly a vent fic, like I don't already have some of those lol
> 
> This is NOT based off imjustalazycat's comic. In any way, shape or form. I didn't even know about that comic until after I had already posted the first oneshot version of this. Completely from myself. Cause I'm evil and wanted Stretch to suffer.
> 
> Enjoy ^^

A sharp crack rang out through the otherwise silent room, Stretch only whimpering a little through the gag cruelly stuffed in his jaw. His wrists had now joined the array of broken, fractured, and outright torn away bones, scattered in different places on his body. His right femur was hanging on by a thread, three of the phalanges on his left hand were missing completely, several of his ribs thrown to the far side of the cold, silent room; his magic levels much too low for them to grow back in any form. And still the sadistic, evil version of his brother (no, that _was_ his brother, his master, _his Lord_ ) continued to bend his bones till they let out satisfying cracks.

 

Stretch didn’t dare move to a more comfortable position than what he had been put in by this Sans (his Sans). Not that he would have been able to do much more than wiggle with how his limbs were tied to each other, his spine bent out in front of him in a painful, agonizing angle. He was sure if he moved, his own spine would snap, killing him (hopefully) instantly. And if he moved and it didn’t, Sans would be sure to punish him for his disobedience.

 

He had tried to fight back, those months ago. He was sure they would have come to save him, sure he wouldn’t have to endure the pain much longer. But as time stretched on and nothing changed, he felt himself losing hope. It was the night Sans first used him, _raped_ him, that he broke. They weren’t coming for him. He had actually started to forget their faces, their voices, what they meant to him. Anytime he thought about his life before, all he could feel was an empty space, a sense of aloneness. A sense that…maybe whoever he had been before, whoever was with him before, maybe they were better off without him around. Maybe that was why they didn’t save him.

 

“Dear brother, I have to say, you’ve been extraordinarily good this evening. You haven’t moved, or made a sound. I think you should be rewarded.” Stretch nearly whined in fear at the words. Rewards meant being fucked until he couldn’t move, until his already screaming bones went numb and he could no longer feel them. Rewards meant that all the marrow, pooled below him and sticking between his bones, making his joints squeak, would be mixed with cum until Stretch felt dirtier than the floor he laid on, lower than the Underground itself.

 

Stretch felt himself shut off, his brain going numb as Sans untied his wrists from his ankles and pushed him to the floor, his naked, trembling bones slick with crimson marrow. He watched passively, without emotion as Sans began to remove his own bone-tight pants, unbuckling the belt with a small jingle Stretch had grown to fear. Stretch closed his sockets, one comfort Sans hadn’t been able to take away from him, and focused on anything but the swell of magic in the room.

 

“Well, well well. Come to take my brother from me?”

 

“He’s not your brother, you fucking piece of shit.” Stretch felt his sockets pop open, but for a moment, he wasn’t entirely certain what he was seeing. Sans had paused in removing his belt, the clasp only halfway undone. In front of him, standing tall and unafraid, were two skeletons he was certain he had never seen before, no matter how his soul clenched. They both looked similar to his Lord, though one looked too much like him for it to be a random visit. Stretch shivered. He really hoped Sans hadn’t allowed others to buy him for the night again.

 

“I don’t see how that is important. He doesn’t want to leave, isn’t that right, brother?” Sans tone commanded his voice, the sharp barb of magic in his soul, deep purple against his pale orange, leading him to say what his master wanted to hear.

 

“No, I don’t want to leave.” Stretch was confused by the obvious pain on the other’s faces, the taller looking only at Sans, the shorter looking down at him. He wasn’t sure what he saw in the stare from the collared skeleton, so similar to his Lord.

 

“We do not care what you wish, or what he thinks he wants. We are taking him back.” The taller spoke finally, his deep register almost a growl. Stretch’s soul pulsed with something at that voice, but he was too frightened, too terrified as Sans’ magic began filling the space around him in violent crackles of energy, to truly think about it. Then suddenly Stretch was on his feet, in front of his Lord, growling at the two skeletons before him. Who were they to attack his brother, his master? He’d kill them both.

 

Magic was thrown, bone attacks both sharp and aimed to kill, to maim sent at the small, infuriating one in the black coat. He wasn’t watching the taller one, which made for a fatal mistake. There was a sharp pricking sensation in his cervical vertebrae, before his entire frame jerked and froze in place, no longer able to support him. He gave a cry of pain as he crumbled to the floor, his bones motionless and his magic unusable. The tall skeleton, rather than finish him off, started to attack Sans, as well as the smaller. Stretch watched as his master attacked them, defended himself, until he had no more magic to use. He fell to his knees, looked back to Stretch, and smirked.

 

Stretch watched as the only thing that made sense in his world dusted before him, not even able to move, not able to think, and felt the black seem into his vision, his breathing erratic, his chest heaving in panic.

 

He passed out as the two skeletons began to walk towards him.


	2. Home Again, Pain a Distant Memory

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So...these might end up being shorter chapters in general, which I am sorry for. But the alternative is no chapters at all, which I don't want to do. So enjoy? ^^

When Stretch awoke once more, it was to a cocoon of warmth around him and a hollow, terribly empty feeling in his chest. He tried to sit up, his stiff frame creaking in protest, but there was a startling lack of pain at the movement. He looked down at himself and found that, instead of his bare, broken bones, he was in a pair of soft gray sweatpants and a strangely familar orange hoody. Lifting up the edge of the cozy orange fabric revealed white bandages around his ribs, faint magic emanating off where he knew there were major breaks. Stretch found that he was laying on a couch in a faintly familiar room, floor covered in carpet rather than hard cement.

 

The empty feeling increased the longer he was awake, like an itch in his chest he couldn’t reach. Pushing the edge of the hoody further up his chest both showed him why he felt so hollow, and nearly threw him into a panic.

 

His soul was missing.

 

Master only took his soul when he was getting punished, but he thought Sans had dusted? Hadn’t he watched, helpless as the two strange, dark skeletons had killed his Master? Maybe they were going to hurt him, punish him for his weakness. Why else would they take it?

 

Stretch curled into himself, chest heaving as his breathing picked up, shallow and quick. His sockets were scrunched closed, tight against the fear he felt. He couldn’t deal with this anymore, he couldn’t handle this anymore, no more punishments, no more punishments, **_no more punishments_**

 

“It’s okay, Stretch.” He sat up completely at the deep, scratchy voice, a sudden wave of calm surrounding his missing soul, though his panic did not calm. There stood the taller skeleton, the one with the painful looking scar across his right socket, a bright crimson scarf around his neck. Stretch trembled in place as he recognized the golden light spilling from between the other’s gloved hands, eyelights stuck to every movement the other skeleton’s clawed phalanges made around his sensitive soul.

 

“P-please…p-please no m-m-more…” Stretch felt tears start to fall from his sockets, his entire frame shaking in fear. The scarred skeleton gazed at him for a moment, before slowly, carefully raising the soul to his teeth, pausing only long enough to look Stretch in the eyes.

 

“I’m not going to hurt you, Papyrus. I’m going to help you remember.” With that he pressed a gentle skeleton kiss to the golden orange soul that pulsed with fear in his hands, smiling softly as Stretch jolted a little at the sensation. Stretch felt so much emotion, so much love, both familial and romantic, flood through him at once, and if it hadn’t been for the extra pair of arms that supported him from behind he might have fallen over and onto the floor. A single look over his shoulder let him know it was the other strange skeleton that reminded him of his Master, with the red eyelights and pale blue collar around his neck.

 

“Listen to your soul, Stretch.” the smaller whispered, holding him tightly, but comfortingly. Stretch jolted again as another wave of emotion hit him, this time with a memory. Flashing smiles, a waft of smoke, a chaste kiss. He felt himself sobbing once more as he recognized the emotion he was feeling as his own, the memory of a day long past. How could he have forgotten?!

 

He didn’t know how long they stayed like that, the smaller (Red) holding him as his memories, **_his memories_** trickled back, the taller (Fell) helping him through the waves of both pain and pleasure, soul-wracking sadness and tear-inducing happiness. It lasted until he felt he could take no more, his bones vibrating, his mind spinning with new and old thoughts and what he had come to believe while with Sans ( ** _not his Sans_** ). Finally it ended, Fell returning his soul to his chest, Stretch finding himself able to breath, getting a hold on himself once again, Fell and Red sitting on either side of him, when a voice sounded from above him.

 

“Papy?” Stretch felt his soul break a the pure disbelief in Sans’s voice, in _his little brother’s voice_ , and looked up, finding his Sans, _his Sans_ standing on the balcony, Classic standing beside him. He stood to his feet, silent sobs heaving from his chest as he stared his little brother in the eyes and held his arms out. In a moment they were full, Sans sobbing and wailing into his chest, and in that moment, he didn’t think he could be any happier.


	3. How Could I Let this Happen?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry its shorter, but its 5 in the morning lol I need some sleeps XD
> 
> Just a reminder, dark shit ahead.

Red stood in the kitchen with Blue, the smaller sitting at the table, trying to keep himself from running back into the living room and never letting go of his brother again. Red understood, he really did; there were some timelines he was grateful Boss didn’t remember. So when he and his Boss had gotten a desperate call from Blue, begging them to help him find his brother, there wasn’t much more they could do but agree. It wasn’t like they didn’t owe the Blueberry their very lives.

 

But what they found when they finally tracked the crazy, son of a bitch Sans down...Red himself was surprised he hadn’t gotten sick. The first thing they had done once they had gotten the other home was to make sure Blue wasn’t there. Classic came over as soon as Red told him what he and Boss had brought home, convincing Papyrus to have the other over for “training”. Of course Papyrus jumped at any opportunity to hang out with Blue, and Blue, as worried as he had been for the _year_ Stretch had been missing, went without a fight. 

 

Red would have been more worried about that sign of his double giving up if they hadn’t already rescued Stretch by that point. But the lazy alternate was covered in marrow, cum, most of it weeks old. His bones were broken, dislocated, shattered...Blue didn’t need to see that. Yes, he was an adult. Yes, Red trusted the small skeleton with his life. But, if he thought he could have take care of it himself, he would have tried to keep his own brother from seeing what that asshole had done to his lover.

 

So they got Blue out of the house and took Stretch straight to the bathroom, the small space inconvenient but only a concern in the back of their minds as they got to work. Red began healing what he could, using strong bursts in the places that needed it most, while Fell worked on cleaning the crusted marrow and other bodily fluids that covered Stretch’s frame. More than once Red though he might be sick with every new, harrowing injury he found. Fell simply threw away the rags as he used them, to be burned later. It took them a while to break through the magic protecting it, but with the both of them working at it the spiked leather collar finally popped off Stretch’s neck.

 

Once he was clean (Fell had given his entire body at least six solid scrub downs within the three days they gave his magic to replenish) and Red had patched up what injuries he hadn’t been able to heal, they dressed him in one of his favorite hoodies (the bastard had more than likely destroyed the one he had on when he was taken) and a comfortable pair of shorts. Every few hours Fell would give the other a magic donation, eating foods high in magic to keep his own replenished. He kept the now battered and scarred soul with him, unwilling to put it back just yet. Red didn’t fight him on it.

 

Red sighed as Blue stood from his seat, taking shaky steps to stand in the doorway between the living room and the kitchen. He joined him, watching as their brothers slept, Stretch in Fell’s arms as they laid out on the couch. Blue smiled as his sockets filled with tears, putting a hand over his mouth as he began to sob. Red pulled him back from the entrance with gentle hands, guiding him back to a chair. Blue broke down in his arms, sobbing into his leather jacket, not that Red cared. He pulled his alternate close, offering all the comfort he could. 

 

“It’s okay Blue. He’s not going anywhere, I promise.” Red murmured as the other began to hiccup, his sobs growing to be too much. Blue nodded, his face buried into Red’s shoulder as he tried to calm down. Red grit his teeth. He and Boss had talked about how to go about things before Stretch had woke up finally. Blue would, without a doubt, want to be at his brother’s side no matter what. But the hard truth was that it had been a  _ long _ year. A long year of nothing but horror for Stretch, a long year of nothing but pain and worry and regret for Blue. Right now, they weren’t sure what the two Swap brothers needed. But with Blue breaking down in his arms like this, Red was inclined to think it might be better to heal them separately. 

 

“I j-just...how c-can he be that h-h-hurt?” Red could hear the real question Blue was asking him: how could he let his only family get hurt like he had been? Red just shook his head, tightening his hold.

  
How in the fuck were they going to fix this mess.


	4. And Yet...The Pain Continues

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guys...seriously...dark shit

The air was thick with the musk of sex and clouds of dust. He was curled into a ball, spine against the cool stone wall, Master having left him after their session. He was glad he was alone, screams no longer filling the air around him (he still wasn’t sure if they were his own or something he heard in his head). The screams always seemed to follow a sickening crack of bone, but he couldn’t feel anything. He was glad he couldn’t feel anything.

 

Moving brought a deep...something in his bones, something unpleasant. He assumed it was pain, but if so it was somewhere deep in the back of his mind. The numbness gripping his soul would scare him if it wasn’t so welcome. He knew without it, his entire existence would become pain. Pain in his bones that were shattered and splintered. Pain in his pelvis and jaw where Master had fucked him until something broke.

 

He shuddered and pulled deeper into himself, ignoring the unpleasantness. Ignoring the cum he could still hear dripping off of him. Ignoring the marrow that laid in puddles around him. Ignoring the hands that softly held his arms, ignoring the voice that called out to him…

 

~.~

 

Stretch woke up with a pained gasp, his soul pounding in his chest as he tried to sit up. There were hands holding him, holding him down, he couldn’t move! Suddenly, a thought entered his mind. Maybe this was one of Master’s visitors. He needed to be obedient, or Master would punish him. 

 

He relaxed at the thought, going limp in the other’s arms, his soul still pounding on as he tried to keep himself from falling into panic. The hands didn’t move him, didn’t position him, didn’t hurt them. They just held him, the chest behind him vibrating with spoken words, though in his mental state Stretch couldn’t hear him. The voice was deep and rough, right behind his skull, and the longer the other spoke the more Stretch calmed down, until he was reclining back on the other’s chest, no longer tense.

 

“Can you hear, me, Stretch?” 

 

He nearly sat up again at the other’s voice, fear once again filling his soul only for the memories of the day (or had it been days?) before to flood his mind. He turned, eyelights locking on his lover’s, and broke down. Fell held him as he sobbed, not seeming to care as he gripped his shirt as though he would disappear and this would all be a dream. Fell caressed him, calming him down as his sobs turned to hiccups.

 

“Was it a nightmare, love?” Fell asked, his voice quiet and unthreatening. Stretch just nodded, curled up against his boyfriend’s chest like he was a babybones. He couldn’t find it in him to care, not after all that had happened. 

 

“I swear I’m still there…” Stretch whispered, mostly to himself, though he looked up when Fell tensed.

 

“You are not there. You are at home, in my arms. Red and Blue are in the kitchen, making tacos. Classic is coming over sometime tonight. You are home.” Stretch felt himself tear up once more, though he simply wiped them away, burying his face in Fell’s scarf, breathing in his scent. He was home. He was home, he wasn’t in the basement, he wasn’t with Master. He was at  _ home _ . 

 

But...if he was at home...why could he still taste his Master’s magic on his tongue? 

 

Why could he still feel the rough cement under his bones?

 

He pushed away the invasive thoughts. He was home. He wasn’t back there. He would never go back, they had killed Master. There was no reason to still be afraid.

  
And yet...he was.


	5. Healing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Have this lol
> 
> Enjoy!!!

It had been two months. A long two months of focus on healing Stretch’s physical wounds and raising his magic levels back up to somewhat healthy. They had been so low that Red suspected his evil alternate rarely fed the poor skeleton; when he did it must have been to keep his “toy” from dusting. The thought kept a tight knot in all of their souls, though they kept it hidden well enough from Stretch himself.

 

Stretch found himself having panic attacks, nightmares, anytime he fell asleep. Which was often enough, as rest was something he was sorely lacking. Sometimes a noise or color would bring him back to being chained to the wall once more and it would take at least an hour to bring him back to the present. Blue would still wake up expecting his brother to be missing, or worse, and have to hide tears when he remembered once more. All in all, things were better than they were, but better was a relative term when the whole house would be awoken by screams at night.

 

~.~

 

Fell blinked as he awoke, stretching out his spine before sitting up. Sleeping on the couch wasn’t the best plan, but as both beds upstairs were taken and his lover wasn’t ready to share a bed just yet. He knew his own brother was sleeping with Blue, watching over him more than sleeping if the increased naps he took otherwise were any indication. 

 

Not that he was angry about any of this. All Fell really cared about was healing Stretch.

 

He sighed, his spine cracking back into place as he stood and walked to the kitchen. Blue would typically be the one to make breakfast, but it wasn’t like Fell minded. The coffee machine was turned on, the stove heating as he retrieved eggs and sausage from the fridge. Soon the bottom floor of the house was filled both with the satisfying sizzling of cooking food and the mouthwatering aroma that seemed to move about the house like smoke. 

 

Fell hummed as he cooked, taking a sip from a mug of coffee he had made for himself every so often as he turned the food. The noises of Blue and his brother getting up soon sounded above his head, light thumps and small chatter. He could only hope they wouldn’t accidently wake Stretch up before breakfast was actually done. Most mornings were bad mornings, though some of them almost seemed like before his lazy alternate had been taken.

 

He shook his head, turning off the burners and taking the biscuits from the oven, buttering them lightly before making everyone’s plates. Red shuffled in not a moment later, still rubbing at his sockets and yawning through his good morning. Fell gave him a light kiss to the top of his skull before setting him down a plate and a cup of coffee. Once he had set Blue’s place, Fell gathered up what he had plated for Stretch and, with a soft good morning to Blue, headed upstairs.

 

Listening intently at the door told him the other was most likely still asleep, but as he opened the door Fell almost stopped in place, a bit surprised. Stretch was awake, sitting on the edge of his bed with his head in his hands. Not wanting to startle him, Fell knocked softly on the door, wincing at the wild look the other gave him before shaking off his shock.

 

“Did you sleep?” There was no use in asking if he slept well. Any rest his alternate got was riddled with nightmares. He smiled as Stretch nodded, then gestured with the tray he held. “I have your breakfast, would you like to eat it up here or downstairs?” Once again, there really was no reason to ask this. Stretch never ate downstairs, if Fell got him to eat at all. The only meal Fell was absolutely stern with was breakfast, though he did push snacks throughout the rest of the day. It worked, at least for now, and created a much needed routine that Stretch could focus on to stay lucid. 

 

“I’ll eat up here.” Stretch’s voice was no more than a whisper, his vocal magic still strained. Fell nodded, walking over slowly before placing the tray on the other’s nightstand. He sat on the bed, watching as the other sipped at his milk before digging into his food. They would talk after, as they always did, but Fell did not speak until the other was finished, his plate clean. Once Stretch was done he carefully put the dishes back on the tray before turning to Fell.

 

“Do you hurt anywhere?” Fell huffed as Stretch shook his head, looking the other over carefully before nodding. “Let me know if anything feels off, please?” Stretch nodded, then carefully brought his knees up to his chest, looking Fell in the eye. It was a signal that he wanted to talk, and for Fell to listen, so he did.

 

“Was the time before a dream?” Fell went stiff, but didn’t say anything, so Stretch continued. “I wake up here, in my bed, like I used to...and it feels like what happened was a dream, like it didn’t really happen.” He huffs, tears pooling in his sockets with his frustration. “But then I remember what happened, I have nightmares about it, and I think well, maybe this is the dream. And I’m still there.” He let out a small sob, curling further into himself. “And I don’t want to be there, I want to be here! But I don’t know what’s real anymore, I don’t know what to believe!”

 

With that Fell had pulled the trembling skeleton into his arms, shushing him gently as he sobbed. This was a good thing, that Stretch was really starting to think about things from a less detached viewpoint, but it was Fell’s duty to help him determine what was reality, and what was simply his fear. 

 

He spoke gently, calmly, as he explained what happened over that year, from what they knew. He explained that, while Stretch did go through some of the most horrifying things imaginable, he was no longer there. He was home, he was with his family, and he would never be taken away again. Fell was honest in his words and calmed the other as he took in everything.  _ This was a good thing _ , Fell had to remind himself as the other cried, yelled, screamed his emotions. This was a part of the healing process, as much as it hurt everyone involved. As much as it tore him apart to see his love like this, so broken.

  
But it was necessary, so he did it without hesitation. After all, if he didn’t do it, who would?


	6. The Stars

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More fluffy of a chapter lol
> 
> Enjoy!!!

Red was going to snap. He was going to snap and he knew Fell wasn’t far behind him, that Blue had more than likely already snapped and was still in the process of breaking down fully. They hadn’t slept, they weren’t eating. Red knew for certain he hadn’t left the house in at least a week, he doubted his little brother had left in at least double that amount.

 

It was a terrible thing, what had happened to Stretch. He doubted any of them would be able to get past it, completely, for years, if not the rest of their lives. But this...this wasn’t healthy for any of them. It wasn’t healthy for Fell to be up at all hours of the night to make sure his mate wasn’t having a nightmare. It wasn’t healthy for Blue to run himself ragged making sure the house stayed clean (even if it was already spotless, had been spotless for weeks). And it wasn’t healthy for them to stayed cooped up in this damn stuffy house for weeks on end.

 

He sighed as he strode back towards the house, a take-out bag from Muffet’s hanging off his arm. The spider didn’t know exactly what had happened, though most monsters in Swap knew that the older of the skeleton brothers had gone missing for a year.

 

None of them needed to know what had happened during that year. It was obvious from the fact that, even with Stretch being back, still no one had seen him, that something was seriously wrong.

 

Muffet had given him some of Stretch’s favorites, including a few fresh cinnamon buns. The smell wafted through the air as Red trudged through the fresh layer of snow, up to the door of the house, before pausing at the first step. Once he went inside, the air would be heavy and stifling, the serious, deeply disturbed emotions flowing through them all an instant weight that Red, as much as he loved Stretch, wanted nothing more than to get away from. 

 

He sighed, scuffing his shoes on the welcome mat before twisting his key in the lock, swinging the door open, then closed behind him. The effect, as expected, was immediate. It almost made him nauseous, the smell of despair in the air, and it hurt more that there was nothing they could do about it.

 

Red stopped in the middle of the empty living room, the bathroom light on and soft sounds of retching coming through the door signifying that Stretch had worked himself up into a fit again, probably because of a nightmare. Blue’s door was closed, the poor skeleton more than likely huddled under his covers as he tried to block out the sounds of his brother’s misery, as bad as it made him feel to do so.

 

Red understood the feeling.

 

Setting the bag of goodies down on the living room table, Red took a critical glance around the room, eyeing his surroundings with distaste. Everything was clean, had been for longer than Red could remember. But with the atmosphere as it was, everything felt dark, gloomy.

 

With a low growl Red stomped to the windows, opening them all while making sure the screens were down. The curtains over every downstairs window were pinned to the side, both to allow the air in and to let in the artificial light from outside. The he went upstairs, ignoring Blue’s questioning murmur as he opened the curtains there, propping the window open with a book when it proved broken.

 

Blue followed him as he moved to Stretch’s room finally, the air there even heavier with the scent of agony and dark thoughts, darker dreams. Red sneered at it all, throwing the black-out curtains to the side and propping the window open much as he had with Blue’s.

 

Fell and Stretch were standing downstairs, Fell supporting the other as Stretch stared uncomprehendingly at the bag from Muffet’s. Red moved quickly back downstairs, pushing the two of them to sit on the couch before making Blue join them. 

 

“Brother, what are you doing?” Red stopped just as he was about to enter the kitchen, turning back to look at his brother. Fell looked right confused; Red didn’t just  _ do  _ things for the hell of it. Instead of answering him, Red winked, snickering at Fell’s grumbling as he headed into the kitchen.

 

Three plates, three forks, three napkins. Each to each monster sitting on the couch, before Red passed out the cinnamon buns. Fell and Blue looked at them, then back up at Red, as though questioning his sanity. Stretch, however, looked up to him as though he had just given him the key to the Barrier. There were tears in his eyes as he ate his forgotten, favorite snack, Red smiling indulgently. 

 

“Eat up you two, we’re going somewhere after you’re done.” Both little brothers looked as though they were about to protest, Fell especially, but started eating at the look on Red’s face. He wasn’t about to listen to any excuses, not now. They needed this.

 

Stretch needed this.

 

~.~

 

“Blue, did you bring the blanket?” Red smiled softly as the other nodded, holding up a brightly colored, checkered quilt. He helped his alternate lay it out over the soft ground, the echo flowers around them giving them a good ambient light. Fell stood with Stretch off to the side, the two of them holding the large basket of food they had brought.

 

Blue had insisted that if they were going to go look at the stars, they would have a proper picnic. Red hadn’t had the heart to deny him, so he helped with the preparation of everything.

 

Once the blanket was perfect, at least to the Magnificent Blue’s standards, Fell brought Stretch over, helping him sit down. It escaped no one that the broken skeleton had kept his gaze up the entire time they had been there, his sockets filled with more light than any of them had seen in months. 

 

Red made sure his brother ate before he would touch a bite of food himself, insistent that Fell eat at least a sandwich and a half. 

 

“Brother, I’m not that hung-” Fell was cut off by a deep growl, one that Stretch thankfully ignored.

 

“I don’t give a shit. I know you haven’t been eating, so if you don’t eat this,” He waved half a ham sandwich under the other’s face. “I will force it down your damn gullet.” Fell took the food, grumbling halfheartedly about the fact that skeletons didn’t have gullets. Red just chuckled, enjoying his own mustard smothered chicken while he made sure Blue ate as well.

 

Stretch took a few bites of thing here or there, mostly when Blue would ask him to try something from his own food. His attention was mostly locked to the “stars” above them, as though he were mapping them out in his mind, rediscovering each of them. 

 

Which, maybe he was. He had been gone a year, and the star caves were one of his favorite places. Red berated himself; they should have brought him sooner. They should have been taking him places sooner than now, instead of keeping him locked up and “safe” in the house. Stretch deserved to be allowed to see the things, be in the places that made him happy. 

 

If any of them deserved happiness, it was Stretch.

 

~.~

 

They stayed in Waterfall for a few hours, simply talking quietly or looking up at the stars. Blue made them all flower crowns at one point, both Fell and Red ignoring the giggling for the happiness in Blue’s face. It was something that had been gone for so long, they had almost forgotten what it looked like.

 

Stretch stayed quiet, seemingly content to remain mute and enjoy what little peace he could get. Red understood the feeling. It hurt, but he understood.

 

He understood better than most that, as good as things seemed right now, as soon as they went back to that damn house it would all go back to the heaviness, the dark emotions they they were all trying their hardest to keep at bay. And eventually,  _ eventually  _ it would get better. Eventually they wouldn’t have to hold in their own emotions for shame of being selfish when it came to what Stretch had gone through. None of them could ever, would ever understand what the poor skeleton had gone through in that year, and as much as they could guess at they would likely never fully know what all had happened.

 

But they couldn’t keep doing this to themselves, couldn’t keep stewing in their own guilt. What happened, happened. It was in the past, and if  _ they  _ couldn’t move past it, how could they expect Stretch to?

 

Red grinned as he and Fell helped Stretch up, feeling a spark of joy inside as Stretch returned the smile, as short lived as it was. It was progress. Once the two Papyruses were ready to go, Red packed up their trash and helped Blue fold the blanket back up, each of them placing their flower crowns where it had been so as to mark the spot for later.

 

The trip home was filled with meaningless chatter, open-ended questions directed to Stretch every once in a while as they walked. Sometimes he would answer honestly, other times it would be a “set” answer, something just to give a response. They didn’t care as long as he was talking to them, responding to them, even if it was a cookie-cutter answer.

 

Red unlocked the door and waited as they all piled inside, the tentatively happy air remaining for as long as it took for Stretch to decide he’d had enough of social interaction for the day. Both Fell and Blue stared after him in poorly hidden disappointment.

 

Fell started after him, only for Red to stop him by grabbing his arm. Red ignored the questioning look, sitting both him and Blue down once more before enacting the second part of his plan.

 

He brought down a few pillows and blankets for the two little brothers, making a nest around them and shushing the two of them when they attempted to protest. Once they were adequately wrapped up, Red put on a Napstaton marathon, handing Blue the remote.

 

“You two need a break to just chill for a while. I’ll keep an eye on him for now, and I had better not catch either of you trying to come upstairs.” Red waited until he received a nod from the both of them, the two realizing he was serious. Red nodded, satisfied, before making his way upstairs. The eventual sounds of Blue and Fell chatting about the show lightened his soul a little as he opened Stretch’s bedroom door.

 

There was a quiet lump on the bed, the blanket moving up and down in a slow pattern. Red slowly made his way over, scuffing his socked feet as he went so that his brother’s alternate would know he was there. Stretch didn’t acknowledge his presence except to curl further into himself.

 

Red sat on the floor, his back to the edge of the bed and the front of Stretch’s form. There was silence other than the occasional shout from downstairs or slight shifting on the bed behind him.

 

Red sighed, leaning back to rest his head against the bed. It would be hard. It might be impossible.

 

“It’ll get better, bro. I promise.” But they would get through it.


	7. I Hurt Myself Today, To See if I could Feel

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [This is where the title's from.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vt1Pwfnh5pc)
> 
> Okay, this is the last chapter of this little adventure, and honestly? I thought about deleting this work for how damn dark the first parts are...but I read a comment by someone who said it comforting to them to read. So, for them, I've kept this fic on here, and I went ahead and finished it because of a lovely comment from someone else.
> 
> Thank you all for reading my shit, I wish you all the best
> 
> Enjoy
> 
>  
> 
> Warning for self harm and suicide attempt

They really should have been expecting it. The marks on his arms and femurs that increased in number, the nightmares that sent screams deep into the night. It was really only a matter of time before something snapped, and that something just happened to be Stretch’s will to live.

 

It had been a little over a year. Blue had finally started forgiving himself for letting his guard down, for letting his brother get taken. Red, and Blue once he had pulled himself together again, had kept the three of them going, making sure they all got out and that everyone ate a substantial amount every day. Fell had carefully gotten Stretch into a schedule of sorts that kept him out of bed all the time, that got him doing things again.

 

The first time Stretch told a pun there were tears shed and not a single groan heard.

 

But really, after what had happened? Once Stretch really remembered everything he was going to remember and it fully hit him that what he had gone through had really happened and that the time before and the time now was not a dream, never would be a dream...The scars became deeper and the jokes less told. 

 

Red could see the signs and tried to warn his brother, but by then it was too late. They had gone out for a single night, leaving Stretch home along with his brother, only to receive a call from a sobbing, hysteric Blue.

 

Fell couldn’t help but curse himself in self-punishment for leaving. Maybe if he hadn’t Stretch wouldn’t have deep cuts in his femurs, only the magic of several healers keeping him from falling. It had been a miracle that they had gotten him to the healing clinic in time, Red’s shortcuts invaluable.

 

Fell and Blue decided to never again complain about their brother’s laziness with the ability.

 

There were promises made, at Stretch’s bedside. Promises made, tears shed, angry words spat as the time came for all but one of them to leave. Stretch slept through it all, his magic working towards healing his soul. 

 

Once he woke up, he had tried to apologize. Over and over again, with tears and in the loudest voice he could manage did Stretch apologize for trying to end his life, to what he had almost accomplished in hurting those closest to him.

 

None of them would hear it. Fell and Blue kept his thought occupied with the various projects they had come up with while he was asleep. It was only once the two were sent home for rest, Red keeping watch, that Stretch tried once more to apologize.

 

He was so sorry, he hadn’t wanted to live anymore, hadn’t wanted the memories playing in his head anymore, hadn’t wanted to relive those moments over and over again anymore. In those last moments he had wanted nothing more than peace, nothing more than to no longer be in pain. He didn’t think about the consequences, about what would happen to Blue or Fell once he was gone.

 

Stretch very carefully never said dead.

 

Red listened. Once Stretch had broken down into sobs, bones trembling and chest heaving, he pulled him into a firm hug, holding him to his chest. He explained that while they were all heart broken that he felt the way he did, that they hated everything he had gone through, he should never have to apologize for hurting. They loved him, they would always love him.

 

He may not be healed, he may never heal fully. But they would always love him, would always be there to help him along when everything seemed to hard to handle on his own. They would never abandon him, no matter what happened.

 

No matter what.

  
  
**Years Later~**

 

A smile. A laugh. A cheerful exclamation.

 

A tear. A sob. A mournful cry.

 

A pun.


End file.
